Censorship in India on the rise amid elections

This month, Indians are voting in the largest election in
history. It's an exciting exercise in democracy, but it comes against a grim
backdrop: censorship in the country is on the rise, according to a quarterly
report by the South Asian media watchdog, The
Hoot.

The latest report documents 52 instances of censorship
during the first three months of 2014 compared with 45 during the same period
last year. The most notable example is the abrupt blackout of a live telecast
on the final moments of parliamentary deliberations and voting on a
controversial bill to create the new state of Telangana. While the government
claims the blackout was due to a technical glitch, the opposition Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) insists it was a tactical move by the ruling Congress party to
ram through the vote to shore up support during an election in which its
prospects look grim. Other parties also slammed the blackout as "undemocratic."

While the government was the top transgressor (consistent
with last year), right-wing Hindu groups trailed just behind. In fact, the number
of cases of censorship by right-wing Hindu groups nearly doubled, according to
the report. Many observers predict that these groups will be further emboldened
if BJP candidate Narendra Modi becomes prime minister.

"There is less and less space for contentious and dissenting
views," Geeta Seshu, consulting editor for The Hoot, told CPJ. "In one sense,
differences are becoming more marked and sharper, which may not a bad thing in
itself, but it is extremely unhealthy if the airing of these differences is
silenced or censored."

Sumit Galhotra is the research associate for CPJ's Asia program. He served as CPJ's inaugural Steiger Fellow and has worked for CNN International, Amnesty International USA, and Human Rights Watch. He has reported from London, India, and Israel and the Occupied Territories, and specializes in human rights and South Asia.